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441-01432 (Consumer protection)

Paper petition

Original language of petition: English

Petition to the House of Commons

We, the undersigned, residents of the Province of Manitoba, draw the attention of the House of Commons to the following:

Whereas:

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre is reporting a rise in money laundering and fraud with the set-up of synthetic or false bank accounts where money is being sent from duped seniors' savings accounts and potentially going towards terrorist financing;

The Government of BC estimates that $46.7 billion was laundered through the Canadian economy in 2018;

FINTRAC (Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada) states requirements are not sufficient to prevent fraudsters from moving money illegally under the pretense of legitimacy through the wire transfer system in Canada;

Our growing retiree population in Canada are increasingly becoming the target of fraud given they have built up wealth over a lifetime to help them support their retirement years and are vulnerable due to lack of controls and protection through the transmission of money within the Canadian banking system; and

Seniors are seeing their savings built up over years removed due to the sophistication and disguised deceit and trickery foisted on them by professional fraudsters to exploit them and the current Canadian banking system.

We, the undersigned citizens of Canada, call upon the House of Commons to undertake a serious and comprehensive review of the current transit system of Canadian citizens' money in this country with the aim of putting more stringent procedures, protocols, and safeguards in place to protect seniors in particular from losing their lifetime savings and wealth to fraud.

Response by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance

Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): The Honourable Chrystia Freeland

The Government of Canada is committed to a strong and comprehensive Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing (AML/ATF) Regime. The government continually reviews the Regime to ensure that it is responsive to evolving risks. Since 2019, the government has made investments of over $319.9 million and a number of legislative and regulatory changes to enhance the effectiveness of the Regime.

Budget 2023 proposes legislative amendments to strengthen the investigative, enforcement, and information sharing tools of Canada’s AML/ATF Regime. These amendments will complement the government’s Budget 2022 commitment to establish a new Canada Financial Crimes Agency to become the lead enforcement agency against financial crime.

On June 6th, 2023, a public consultation was launched that will examine ways to improve Canada's AML/ATF Regime, as well as examine how different orders of government can collaborate more closely. This consultation will support the parliamentary review required under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act. Details of these consultations can be found here: Consultation on Strengthening Canada's Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing Regime - Canada.ca

Illicit funds laundered by criminal actors are often generated illegally through fraud, including fraud that targets seniors. The Government of Canada is committed to protecting Canadians from these types of crimes. One major way it does so is through the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, which is the central repository for fraud information and intelligence in Canada, and is jointly operated by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Ontario Provincial Police and the Competition Bureau of Canada. As a National Police Service function, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre gathers intelligence on fraud affecting Canadians, and assists all law enforcement agencies across Canada with fraud prevention and enforcement. 

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre has a Senior Support Unit entirely supported by volunteers who are dedicated to reducing the impact of fraud across Canada. The Senior Support Unit is a critical component of the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, providing advice, education and reassurance to vulnerable Canadians targeted by fraudsters. The Senior Support Unit receives reports referred by the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre’s Intake Unit, after identifying that further assistance for a senior or vulnerable individual is needed.

Presented to the House of Commons
Kevin Lamoureux (Winnipeg North)
May 9, 2023 (Petition No. 441-01432)
Government response tabled
July 19, 2023
Photo - Kevin Lamoureux
Winnipeg North
Liberal Caucus
Manitoba

Only validated signatures are counted towards the total number of signatures.